status updates – a celebration of postcards

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Month: October 2015

To Hilary, I’m having a great time. On Sun we went on some go-karts motor ones it was great fun. Today we went to Arlington Court and yesterday we went to Lynmouth and Lynton. Tonight we might go fishing. The farms nice and they have a lamb that comes to you and 3 horses and sheep, cows and chicks bye for now Helen.

As this is postmarked ‘Tunbridge Wells 1.15pm 9 Aug 1976 Kent’ it would appear to have been posted after Helen returned from her trip to Devon. The other postmark reads ‘National Savings Diamond Jubilee 1916-1976 Go on saving at The Post Office’ – the Post Office promoting its savings schemes.

The stamp is 8½p – the price for a 2 ounce (57g) first class letter at the time, equivalent to 64p in 2015; a small postcard stamp would have cost 6½p (49p in 2015)

Helen went to Devon regularly, often staying on farms it seems. Ilfracombe remains much the same with that beautiful blue sky on the odd summer’s day; the white Royal Britannia Hotel on the right hand side is still a popular place to stay.

I am increasingly sad that I lost touch with Helen, as we obviously exchanged cards for some years after I moved away from the area where we were at primary school together.

Tuesday Dear Simon & Hilary, We didn’t quite make it to the Greek Isles but we’re still on the Mediterranean in an apartment outside Estartit. It is very quiet here and not too far from the beach. We’ve been to a local market and a few towns & have booked trips to Montserrat, Gerona and a flamenco show. The weather is very warm – even at night, although it is rather windy which makes swimming in the sea quite tricky. We have been eating out a lot & discovered everything said about the Spanish waiters is true! Love to you both, Sue xxx

Lots of information is being shared, although there is no clue as to why they didn’t make it to Greece; likewise no clue as to who is with her on holiday – their name is excluded from the signature so I can only assume that we did not know her travelling companion.

The picture is not referenced on the reverse but, having visited the area some years ago, I can confirm that it is typical of the rocky coast of the Costa Brava which features many, tiny hidden coves and is probably best explored from the water.

Having studied the sweep of the ‘S’ and the style of the ‘E’ I am confident that this is not the Paris Sue. Amazingly I do not remember this Sue either! As she has addressed Simon first I suspect she was a friend of his, but he cannot shed any light. So, once again, I have to admit to losing touch with Sue 😦

14/5/91 Many thanks for your letter and John’s birthday card. Hope your problems are sorting themselves out now! Many congrats on your becoming parents for the 2nd time! We are having a great time here & after doing the tourist trip around LA, Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Universal Studios & Disneyland, we hired a car this morning & went to Queen Mary and Spruce Goose, then drove here to Palm Springs went up in this cable car 9,000 feet for dinner & came down to fairyland it seemed. All lights & very warm. Love J P R & C

Phew! I’m exhausted just reading this one! Meticulous planning has ensured maximum use of the available holiday time 🙂

The picture is of the Aerial Tramway, Palm Springs; the cars seem to have been updated since 1991; the spectacular views are much the same.

John, mentioned in the text, was my Dad’s childhood friend – their mothers were good friends – although he sadly died, suddenly, a few years after this card was written. The ‘problems’ mentioned refer to the UK recession of 1991 which caused many people, including us, to go into negative equity and lose their homes. Recessions/Banking Crises come round regular as clockwork it seems! The comment about being parents for the second time proved premature as we subsequently lost the baby early on in the pregnancy – it was a bad year. The friendship between the two families continues into the third generation and now spans over a hundred years!

Mum, Dad, Si, Hils & Tallulah, We’ve been to York today to learn a bit of Viking history. It’s quite an attractive city even when it’s wet and windy. The B&B is really smart – we’re in an old farmhouse and the fried breakfast is huge! We’ll be sightseeing on the ‘Dales’ tomorrow looking for Triston & Heriot. Had a good time with Don & Mor & Co. See you soon love Paul & Trace

The post marks are very feint on this card; the year is 1991 but the month is unclear and there is no clue in the text, since ‘wet and windy’ can occur all year round in the UK! The other post mark reads ‘The Magic of British Music THE BRITS 1991′

Inevitably, the weather features in the text, together with a descriptive status update on the accommodation and food. ‘Triston & Heriot’ refers to the popular TV series ‘All Creatures Great and Small‘ which was set in the Yorkshire Dales.

This card is written by Paul, who was, and still is, my brother-in-law. Tracey was, and still is, his wife. Presumably Simon (and Paul’s) parents were staying with us over the period as they are also addressed, along with our daughter, Tallulah, who was just a baby at the time. Lots of family info here as there is mention of Uncle, Aunt and cousins on Simon and Paul’s Mum’s side of the family – phew! We see Paul and Tracey regularly, along with ‘Mum & Dad’ and ‘Don & Mor & Co’ at family gatherings.